Taliban suspects held

US forces detained 35 Taliban suspects today, including a rebel commander, as they swept through a province in south-eastern Afghanistan.

Hundreds of American troops began combing three districts of Zabul province on Friday, said governor Khial Mohammed.

“There was no resistance,” Mohammed said. “All the suspected Taliban are in US custody.”

American troops also found weapons during the raids, which he said were continuing today.

Lt Col Michele DeWerth, a US military spokeswoman in Kabul, had no immediate comment on the operation.

Mohammed said the operation netted Mullah Rozi Khan, who is believed to command Taliban militants in the province, where the government of Hamid Karzai has little control.